Crown of Blood

2.2|| Trix's Tale

"Kat?" Trix glanced at him as though he was insane.

"You touched Kat, which means this is her essence. You might hurt her if you hurt this thing."

"Yes, Trix," the apparition said, using Kat's voice. "Why would you hurt your friend? You already hurt me when you touched me."

Trix faltered, confusion obvious in his features. Cage's grip on his wrist tightened to steady him. Then he thrust his hand forward and sent a bolt of lightning directly at the creature. Lulled into a false sense of security, it wasn't quick enough to move out of the way and took the bolt directly in the chest.

Cage released Trix and shot another bolt and then another. The thing screeched in pain as steam rose from its pretend skin. Kat's features contorted in agony and pain ran through him, making him nauseous.

This is not Kat. This is inside Trix's head. It's a part of Lucille. It's what hurt Kat and drove her mad.

He kept repeating the words as he unloaded more magic into the thing. The effort of it had sweat dripping down his brow. With every passing second, his energy drained and his muscles contracted painfully. The creature didn't burst into flames, but became smaller and smaller until there was little left of her. So little that he wasn't even sure there was something still there to hit, but he continued to force his magic forward.

"I think... I think it's gone." Trix lowered his hands and squinted into the darkness.

Cage broke the stream of lightning and fell over. Every breath he took was sharp and painful in his chest, but he felt as if he'd just come out of water a moment before he were to drown.

"That was a very impressive display of force," Trix said.

"Can... Can we go back now?" Though Cage didn't think he had a choice in the matter. He was so exhausted, he could feel his consciousness slipping away.

"Yes, go. You can't lose yourself in here."

And yet, pulling himself out of Trix's mind meant putting in an effort he wasn't sure he was up for. He closed his eyes and focused on his real body, on what he truly felt. It was hard when he felt as if he were floating in nothingness.

It was so tempting to just rest for a few moments, drift away on the pleasant wave of someone else's consciousness. What could happen?

Something squeezed his shoulder so hard, the pain reverberated through his very conscience. Cage sucked air through his teeth and his well developed warrior senses brought him back to the place he needed to be to defend himself.

The dim light in the infirmary still made his eyes water, but Cage ignored the pain and twisted his body to avoid any further harm coming to it. The sharp movement had him toppling off the stool and onto the floor. In a moment, his hand was on the hilt of his sword, but he faltered the moment he took in the angry face hovering above him.

"What in the bloodiest of hells do you think you're doing?" Jazz said between his teeth.

Cage blinked, his gaze moving from him to Jinx who stood just behind him, a look both worried and hopeful upon her beautiful face. He wanted to answer, but found that his lungs had little air in them, so all he could do was wheeze. The exhaustion he'd gathered while battling the monster inside Trix followed him into reality, leaving him defenseless.

"I told you not to attempt this! I told you it could destroy your mind!"

Jazz's screams were a distant buzzing in Cage's ears. He shut his eyes, trying to regain his senses, but the return had been so brusque, he felt as if half of himself was still lost with the demon Kat.